Child-resistant closure and container packages conventionally are employed for prescription vials, vitamin bottles and a number of other applications. The present invention deals particularly with those types of child-resistant packages that involve application of an axial force on the closure while simultaneously turning the closure with respect to the container to remove the closure from the container.
A tamper-indicating child-resistant package in accordance with one presently preferred aspect of the present invention includes a container having a finish with an open mouth and an external circumferential bead spaced from the mouth. A closure has a skirt for externally encircling the container finish, a tamper band frangibly connected to the skirt for positioning beneath the external circumferential bead on the container finish, and a spring element for engaging the finish and biasing the closure away from the finish. The finish and the skirt have interlocking elements that resist removal of the closure from the finish absent force against the spring element to disengage the interlocking elements. Engagement of the tamper band with the external circumferential bead ruptures the frangible connection of the band to the skirt upon first removal of the closure from the container finish to indicate potential tampering with the package. In the preferred embodiment of the invention, the interlocking elements include at least one external thread on the container finish and a locking lug on an underside of the external thread. At least one internal thread on the skirt has an interruption for receipt over the lug, axial force on the closure being required to move the interruption out of engagement with the lug and permit removal of the closure.
A child-resistant package in accordance with another presently preferred aspect of the invention includes a container having a finish with an open mouth, an external circumferential bead spaced from the open mouth, at least one external thread between the mouth and the circumferential bead, and a locking lug on an underside of the external thread. A closure has a base wall, and a peripheral skirt extending from the base wall with at least one internal thread having an interruption for receipt over the locking lug on the container finish. A tamper band is frangibly connected to the skirt at a position spaced from the base wall, and a stop flange resiliently pivotally extends from the band for engagement with the external circumferential bead on the container finish. A projection extends from the base wall in a direction opposite from the skirt. The projection has an external surface with a portion adjacent to the base wall and an external bead spaced from the base wall. The closure also has a spring element for engaging the container finish. The closure is received on the container finish in a tamper-indicating child-resistant mode of operation with the skirt received over the finish, the threads on the finish and skirt engaged, the locking lug on the finish received in the thread interruption on the skirt, the spring element engaged with the finish to bias the closure away from the finish, and the stop flange received beneath the external circumferential bead on the finish. The closure is received on the finish in a non-child-resistant mode of operation with the projection received within the container mouth, the external surface portion sealingly engaged with the inside diameter of the container mouth and the external bead on the projection received by snap-fit within the container mouth.